Former Red Sox Catcher Ryan Lavarnway Plays First Game At Fenway Since 2015

It’s been a while since we’ve seen Ryan Lavarnway at Fenway Park. More than six years, actually.

The former Red Sox catcher got the start behind the dish for the Cleveland Indians at Fenway on Saturday, marking his first appearance in Boston since June 16, 2015 — when he caught seven innings for Atlanta Braves.

Lavarnway’s tenure in Boston lasted four seasons. He was the backup catcher behind Jarrod Saltalamacchia from 2011-13, then saw limited time at first base in 2014. Overall, he appeared in 97 games for the Red Sox.

That’s pretty much where Lavarnway’s career peaked. He hasn’t appeared in more than a handful of games since 2015, when he split the year between the Baltimore Orioles and the Braves. Saturday’s game marked his sixth of the season — his most since the 2018 season.

The Indians designated him for assignment in June but selected his contract on Thursday.

While he hasn’t been active in the bigs lately, Lavarnway did work alongside another former Red Sox player — Ian Kinsler — on Team Israel at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.